Meet the Moroccan smartphone apps that won the Méditel Apps Challenge

Read In

In 2012, only 16% of Moroccans owning a mobile phone had a
smartphone. And yet, smartphone penetration grew 30% from 2011 to
2012, according to the ANRT.

Now, for the third year in a row, local telecom Méditel is
supporting that growth by working to promote Moroccan apps with
its Méditel
Apps Challenge.

Of the 100 Android, iPhone and Windows Phone apps submitted to the
competition, Méditel named 15 finalists and then invited the public
to vote for their favorite five.

The three final laureates reflect how diverse the Moroccan app
scene has become, offering games, travel, daily life and sports
statistics.

The Grand Prize was awarded to Mehdi Sakout, for his Android app
Maroc
Culture, a game that tests knowledge of local Moroccan culture
and traditions.

Second Prize went to Yassine and Med Amine Serhane, who
built Morocco
Smart Tour, a Windows App that lets users know what to
visit in the 10 biggest Moroccan cities, depending on the time they
have.

Third prize was awared to two applications: Watiqa and
Ronda. Watiqa,
a Windows Phone app built by Soufiane Rochdi, notifies users of the
administrative procedures needed to change or renew
identification such as a passport, national identity card, and
drivers license.Ronda, built by
Fayçal Benslimane and soon to be available on the App Store, will
render the famous Maroccan card game in an iOS app.

A student prize was awareded to Oualid El Khamlish and Yassine
Fraihi for their Android app Foot
Alert, which alerts userswith football news and
live results.

Other events have been organized to support this growing app
scene, such as the Mobile Monday events and
the BeMyApp event
that took place this weekend.

Aline is startup storyteller and journalist. Previously she was Wamda's French editor and an entrepreneur, opening The Blue House residence for international startups in a Moroccan surf town. You can follow her on Twitter @YallahAline.